March Garden Day - Annual celebration of gardening to be held March 10

GRAND HAVEN – For some, the unusually mild temperatures this year may have blurred the lines between winter and spring.

But seasoned West Michigan gardeners know that, snow or no snow, spring doesn’t begin until March Garden Day.

The popular annual March Garden Day – A Celebration of Gardening, will this year be held on March 10 at the Grand Haven Community Center, 421 Columbus.

Sponsored and organized by the West Michigan Nursery and Landscape Association, March Garden Day attracts approximately 300 gardeners of all skill levels from across the state. The event, which offers lively and informative programs and a garden market filled with vendors, provides a welcome break from the winter months and a peek at the growing season to come.

Registration for the seminar is $45 in advance and $50 at the door. A gourmet box lunch, provided by Grand Haven’s Landyacht Bake House, is included in the price of the ticket.

Keynote speakers featured this year are author, educator and garden designer Janet Macunovich of the Michigan School of Gardening, and Ed McKee, manager of Outdoor Horticulture at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park.

Janet Macunovich

Known as the gardener’s “personal trainer,” Janet Macunovich is recognized for her down-to-earth approach in taking the mystery out of gardening and design. As the co-founder of the Michigan School of Gardening, Macunovich strives to provide practical training and advice to gardeners across the nation.

With her March Garden Day presentation of “Continuous Color in the Landscape,” Macunovich will show how to keep your garden from taking on the appearance of a moonscape during the winter months. She focuses on plant and materials selection, design and maintenance.

In her “What Your Garden Says About You” program, Macunovich taps decades of experience working in private garden spaces to create a guide to the revelations unveiled by a gardener’s choice of colors, décor and design.

Ed McKee

Ed McKee has worked in many areas of the horticulture industry – including commercial and residential landscape design, and the wholesale nursery business - since earning degrees in ornamental horticulture and business management. A self-proclaimed “plant geek,” McKee joined the team at Meijer Gardens seven years ago where he and staff create the garden’s spectacular seasonal displays, exhibits and landscapes.

With his “Art Appreciation 101” talk, McKee will share ideas on adding sculpture to your garden – whether it be a bronze, or sculptural plant-form. He’ll demonstrate how to utilize the design principles of unity, rhythm, and order to maximize the impact of sculptural forms in the landscape, and bring an element of surprise into the garden.

The daylong seminar also includes break-out sessions with plant and garden experts:

West Michigan Nursery and Landscape member growers contribute truck-loads of greenery to transform the Community Center into an indoor oasis, creating the perfect setting for a “Garden Market.” The market features displays, information and products relating to garden upkeep and design. Gardeners can speak directly to representatives from a variety of plant-related businesses, including landscapers, nurseries, tree maintenance services and yard equipment dealers.

To pre-register and reserve your space at March Garden Day, visit Grand Haven Garden house in Grand Haven, or Jonker’s Gardens in Holland.

You can also contact organizers at mailto:info@wmnla.com or call committee member Laurel Nease at 616/847-8955.

The West Michigan Nursery & Landscape Association is a local non-profit organization of gardening and landscape professionals. Proceeds from March Garden Day, including a silent auction, help support the association’s designated funds at the Grand Haven Area Community Foundation: WMNLA Scholarship Fund, for students seeking higher education in related fields; and the Horticulture Education Grant Fund to support horticulture education in area high schools and technical training centers.

For additional information visit www.wmnla.com, find March Garden Day on Facebook; or email Laurel Nease, a member of the March Garden Day Committee, at mailto:info@wmnla.com